Leaked LG F490L ‘Liger’ may be the first smartphone with a LG-made SOC

A newly leaked brochure out of South Korea indicates that LG is gearing up to release a new phablet-sized handset that seems to pack some reasonably decent specs. The device is dubbed the LG F490L and bears the codename “Liger”.

As for the specs, the LG F490L offers up a 5.9-inch 1080p display (not as impressive as QHD, but still more than decent), 2GB RAM, 32GB storage, a 13MP main cam with laser auto-focus, a 2.1MP front cam and a 3000 mAh battery. The overall aesthetics are clearly similar to the LG G3, though the phone is obviously much bigger measuring 157.8 x 81.8 x 9.45mm. Interestingly enough, it is still smaller than the Nexus 6 though, which dimensions are 159.26 x 82.98 x 10.06 mm.

the LG F490L is powered by an LG-made NUCLUN octa-core

You may have noticed I haven’t mentioned the SoC for the F490L, and for good reason — it stands out enough to discuss separately. According to the brochure, the LG F490L is powered by an LG-made NUCLUN octa-core, which means that this could very well be the first handset to be powered by an in-house LG processor. The CPU is said to feature four cores clocked at 1.2GHz and four at 1.5GHz, though it’s unclear whether this is a 32 or 64-bit chip.

Now only one question left: Is this yet another LG G3 spin-off, a next-gen LG G Pro or something else? Considering the NUCLUN is LG’s first chip for smartphones, odds are the quantities are low, that makes it less likely that it’ll be the next-gen LG G Pro — unless there’s also a Snapdragon model for other markets. For now it remains unknown whether or not it will carry the G branding (G3 or otherwise) or a completely different moniker all together.

It is worth noting that the handset will reportedly be exclusive to LG U+ (LG’s own carrier brand) in South Korea and that should allow it to keep the numbers low enough to ensure the NUCLUN chip can chip up with demand. Its unclear if or when the phone might reach other markets outside of Korea. What do you think, if the handset came to a market near you, would you be interested in trying out a handset with an LG-made SoC?